As one of the most popular practices in the world, Yoga attracts millions of people every day. In the United States alone, more than 15 million people practice yoga on a regular basis (Yoga Journal, 2008 “Yoga in America” Market Study, February 2008). A yoga mat is usually used to practice yoga. However, most people have great difficulty in carrying their yoga mats around or storing their yoga mats because a comfortable yoga mat measures at least ⅛ inch thick and it needs to be rolled up. The rolled up yoga mats are awkward in shape and size because they are usually long rolls measuring more than 24 inches. While yoga mat carriers and bags do exist, they do not change the awkward shape and size of the rolled up yoga mats. And they have to be carried separately as a long roll in addition to other personal belongings a yoga practitioner also need (e.g. purses, backpacks, towels, water bottle, etc.) In addition, there are a lot of efforts required for a person to carefully roll and unroll a yoga mat just to get it in and out of the existing yoga mat carriers and bags because these carriers or bags are also awkwardly shaped as a long roll. Furthermore, for the yoga practitioners who are avid travelers, the rolled up yoga mats are almost impossible to fit in any purse, backpack or carry-on luggage bags, thus making them very difficult to travel with. Another problem with the awkward shape of the rolled up yoga mats is that they are very difficult to store since they cannot be easily stacked and the long rolls are too easy to move around. Last but not least, the rolled up yoga mat makes maintaining the mat hygiene a difficult task since rolling the mat means the side touching the floor gets rolled in with the side touching the body. Any germs/dirt on the floor will easily get transmitted to both sides of the mat, making cleaning a challenging task. Since most people practice yoga with their bare feet on the mat and with their whole body touching the mat during certain poses, hygiene is a big concern especially when doing yoga in a public place such as gym or yoga studio.
In addition, a large number of yoga practitioners also practice meditation, with some practitioners practice meditation regularly at the beginning and/or the end of the yoga session. Meditation practice also requires a meditation mat or cushion which its length is roughly one third of the regular yoga mat with similar width and thicker cushioning to allow comfortable sitting. Thus many yoga/meditation practitioners have to prepare two different types of mats for their yoga and meditation practices separately.
The present invention is a portable, foldable yoga/meditation mat which can be easily folded/unfolded using the linear indentations, and thus fundamentally changes the size and shape of a folded yoga mat from a long roll into a portable sized block. This invention of a portable, foldable yoga mat is simple to use and can easily fit into either non-customized purses, briefcases, totes, backpacks, carry-on luggage etc. or customized bags or straps, and thus can be easily carried around with other personal belongings. The portable, foldable yoga mat of the present invention can also be easily stored by stacking them on top of each other or with other regular shaped items such as storage boxes. The present invention also helps to achieve better hygiene in yoga practice since the folding ensures one side (facing the floor) does not touch the other side (facing the practitioner). Furthermore, it can also be folded along some but not all linear indentations to form a nicely sized meditation mat. The linear indentations can also serve as visual coordinates to assist body alignment in yoga practice. The convenient solutions are achieved while preserving all of the desired qualities (such as a non-slip surface and a sufficient cushioning) needed from a yoga or meditation mat.